Sports writer for The Age

His mental demons finally buried and the roadblock that stood in the way of his first major title beaten down, Adam Scott is now poised to surpass Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy as the top man in world golf, Australian great Peter Thomson has declared.

The man who has won more major titles than any other Australian is adamant Scott has become the complete player, and will rise to No.1 in the world rankings - overtaking current leaders Woods (No.1) and McIlroy (No.2) - within the next year.

Thomson said the newly crowned Masters champion was in such control of his game that he was now primed to win the British Open in July - a dream scenario for the Queenslander that would eliminate the nightmare of his infamous meltdown at last year's Open.

''I should think he will be seen as the best player in the world eventually. He will surpass Woods and McIlroy,'' said Thomson, who knows what it takes to win the British Open, having done it five times himself. ''But it might even happen sooner than that.''

Advertisement

Scott will rocket from No.7 to No.3 in the world (his equal-highest standing ever) after holding his nerve under extreme pressure to become the first Australian to win the US Masters at Augusta.

Scott fitted neatly into the green jacket and then paid tribute to Australia's past golfing greats, including Thomson.

Thomson said Scott's Masters victory could ''open the floodgates'' for he and fellow Australians such as Jason Day and Victorian Marc Leishman to become perennial contenders in major tournaments from now on.

''We've got the quality, not the quantity,'' Thomson said. ''And there is no reason why guys like Day and Leishman can't go onto win majors. I think both of those players will become prominent from now on.''

Thomson said Scott and company would have a whole new generation of young golfers waking up early to watch them contend in tournaments, as they did on Monday.

His sentiments were echoed by Jack Newton, one of six Australians to finish runner-up in the Masters when beaten by the late Seve Ballesteros in 1980. Newton watched the final round drama from a motel room in Forbes in country NSW where he has been conducting a junior clinic.

''It's a wonder you didn't hear my yelling in Queensland,'' said Newton, who believes Scott has the best swing in the game but had been ''in denial'' about his putting.

''I've got to say when I looked at the leaderboard late in the tournament and it was 1-2-3 Aussie flags in succession I thought, 'You bloody beauty. The 100-pound gorilla is gone.'''

Your comment has been submitted for approval.

Related Coverage

16 Apr
1. Having led for much of the final round, Argentina's Angel Cabrera does the right thing by Australia and bogeys the 13th, handing the outright lead to Jason Day, who birdies the 14th. Adam Scott and Cabrera are locked on seven under but the action is starting to heat up.

16 Apr
So Adam Scott is inducted into the pantheon. But where to seat him? Even before darkness had settled on rainy Augusta, this matter of protocol was an agenda item at impromptu 19th holes all around the country. Ranking the legends; it is the sport beyond sport.

16 Apr
Greg Norman believes Adam Scott can win more majors than any other Australian after smashing the country's 77-year US Masters hoodoo. Scott paid tribute to childhood idol and close friend Norman when he ended decades of near-misses and heartbreak on Sunday by becoming the first Australian to don the green jacket with a playoff victory over 2009 champion Angel Cabrera.

16 Apr
At Kingston Heath last summer, Adam Scott put on the most elegant golfing exhibition ever seen in this country. He beat Ian Poulter to win the Australian Masters, a tournament that has borrowed much from the real version in Augusta.